Miller Value Partners LLC Has $15.66 Million Stock Position in Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC)

Miller Value Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC - Free Report) by 28.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 493,685 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 110,470 shares during the quarter. Lincoln National accounts for about 6.7% of Miller Value Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Miller Value Partners LLC owned 0.29% of Lincoln National worth $15,655,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LNC. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in Lincoln National by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,460 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,199 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $355,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 6,610 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares in the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 30.4% during the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 20.2% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,104 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. 72.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lincoln National Stock Performance

Lincoln National stock traded down $0.84 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $31.75. 576,218 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,620,534. Lincoln National Co. has a 52 week low of $25.80 and a 52 week high of $39.85. The firm has a market cap of $5.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.56. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $34.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.04. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.47% and a net margin of 17.76%. On average, analysts expect that Lincoln National Co. will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.67%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Lincoln National's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $36.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $42.00 to $32.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $35.91.

Lincoln National Profile

Lincoln National Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates multiple insurance and retirement businesses in the United States. It operates in four segments: Life Insurance, Annuities, Group Protection, and Retirement Plan Services. The Life Insurance segment provides life insurance products, including term insurance, universal life insurance (UL), indexed universal life insurance, variable universal life insurance (VUL), linked-benefit UL and VUL products, and critical illness and long-term care riders.